Friday, September 8, 2017

SILVER TONGUED SILVER SCREEN: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN ~ DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES (2017)


Every year more and more genre and franchise films are released and the number of movies on my "Watch List" just grows and grows. In 2003 Disney released the very first film in the Pirates of the Caribbean series, a movie that I thought was going to be dumb because the ride at Disney World I remember being dull. But to my surprise the film was a hit. I wasn't blown away by it but the more I watched it the more I enjoyed it. In 2006 and 2007 the second and third films were released. Here's where I am split with most people I talk to. I actually enjoy the second and third films more than I do the first. The grander scope of story, the thundering scores by Hans Zimmer, the threatening Davy Jones, and the convoluted plotline all worked well with me. It was those two films that really made me a fan of the series.

On Stranger Tides (the fourth film from 2011) I enjoy as well. I was looking forward to seeing a pirates film that didn't focus on Elizabeth Swan and Will Turner, characters with which I wasn't terribly fond of. I loved the mermaids, the treasure hunting for Ponce De Leon had some fun twisty moments, and Ian McShane was awesome as Blackbeard. But the fourth film was missing something, a compelling subplot bearing greater import for the future maybe. A plot reveal about Captain Jack Sparrow that would blow the audience's minds and maybe question what we thought we knew about our favorite pirate. I don't know... It was missing something though that kept it from rising to the level of the previous films in the series.

Now, six years later (the longest stretch between Pirates films to date) we finally have the follow-up film to Stranger Tides. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES came out in May of this summer and I am just now getting to it. From the trailers it seems that this film is giving us that little bit that was missing from Stranger Tides, finally revealing that plot element that will potentially guide the next few films in the series.

So how did it do?

THE PLOT

Henry Turner, the son of Will and Elizabeth, has now grown into his twenties. Henry has made it his mission to find a way to free his father from the curse of the Flying Dutchman. All his searching has pointed him towards the mythical Trident of Poseidon. On his quest he comes upon a brilliant young woman on a quest of her own, to unlock the secret of her heritage. What Henry discovers is that she alone holds the key to finding the Trident. Intertwined with all of this is Captain Jack Sparrow. Jack, at an all-time low, trades his mystical compass for a bottle of rum. Betraying the compass unwittingly opens the gates of the Devil's Triangle unleashing another undead threat upon the seas, the cursed Captain Salazar. Only the Trident can stop Salazar from killing every pirates on the high seas. The hunt is on!

WHAT I LIKED

The Expansion. By the fifth film in a franchise you better hope there's some major character and plot development going on. As much as I love the great horror franchises of the 1980's, nowadays one needs a bit more forward progress. We can't wait around for seven sequels to see Jason finally leave Crystal Lake. I truly love every Friday the 13th film but that was a different era (although the Marvel Studios films seem to be doing quite well making copies of Iron Man again and again).

Spoilers Ahead

Will Turner and Elizabeth Swan return to the story and instead of taking part in the narrative themselves it is through their son, Henry, that their story finally comes to a close. And while Henry throws in with the pirates, unlike his father and mother, he doesn't become one for a change. It is quite refreshing to see a central character in these films not actually become a pirate. And it was nice to see a story that started in 2003 come to a close.

More Spoilers

Captain Barbossa is arguably the unsung hero of this franchise and he is definitely one of the best parts of this film. And it wouldn't be a Pirates film without him. Barbossa's character is finally given a whole new dimension and motivation in this film, the first in the entire franchise. Geoffrey Rush takes Barbossa from one archetype to another showing a rare instance where a character in a big blockbuster franchise is allowed to grow and change. It is perhaps the biggest turn of the film and maybe the most interesting development. Along with the changing elements, Kaya Scodelario adds freshness to the atmosphere portraying a decidedly different character not seen in the previous films, that of a stubborn and strikingly intelligent astronomer.

Then There's Captain Salazar played the talented Javier Bardem. The look and design of Salazar and his accompanying ship and crew... and SHARKS... is reminiscent of the Black Pearl marauders from the original film yet new and terrifying. Many elements come into Salazar's story that I find incredibly interesting, such as being trapped and subsequently cursed when entering the Devil's Triangle (Bermuda Triangle). Then we finally are privy to a piece of Captain Jack's backstory within Salazar's backstory, when Captain Jack was just "Jack" and even before the Sparrow was added to the name. We actually see how Jack becomes captain, first acquires his effects, and earns the name Sparrow. It's my favorite scene of Johnny Depp's in the film.

NITPICKS

First of all, one of the aspects of this franchise that I greatly admire is the storytelling. I couldn't begin to assemble such an intricate, twisting, and convoluted (I mean that in the best way) story such as the Pirates of the Caribbean saga. So take what I am about to say as words from a guy who probably doesn't know what he's talking about. Nevertheless Captain Jack Sparrow, for about 90% of the film, feels heavily diluted or heavily baked. What has made these films so endearing are the performances by Johnny Depp, giving his all, and creating a character few have ever seen before.

Here it feels very much like Depp is phoning it in most of the time or actually drunk on Rum. What I love about Captain Jack Sparrow is that he plays the fool but in actuality is the only person aware of what's really going on, weaving other characters into his plot and playing them perfectly into his endgame. Here he actually is the fool with no grandiose plot in the works and no glimpses of intelligence to make us wonder "Just what is Captain Jack up to?" This is biggest disappointment of the film for me and I'm not sure if it's a fault of the writers or directors (I doubt it) or more a fault of the actor's.

Yet More Spoilers

Then there are a few plotholes which don't quite jive with previous films. During the great flashback sequence we see Jack's Captain die in front of him, his last dying gesture bestowing the fabled Compass unto Jack and saying, "Don't ever betray it." Tia Dalma a.k.a. Calypso said in the second film that Captain Jack bartered the compass from her. Now this could easily be explained away in a simple sentence in a future movie but as of now it is a major continuity error. And while it closes the chapter on the Swans and Turners it also raises some rather ponderous questions... like how is Davy Jones back? And why is Will covered in barnacles? I thought if you're doing the job of the Flying Dutchman then you weren't becoming one with the sea? That doesn't seem to be the case here.

THE VERDICT

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales is another great exploration of the myths and adventures of the high seas. The creative teams behind the franchise continue to find new and inventive ways to further the story and the characters. And while some characters' chapters are brought to a definitive close, a whole mess of new chapters begin. The only significant drawback to this film versus the previous four is a seeming lack of conviction on the part of Johnny Depp. It's sad that the character we all come to see in this film is the one character who can hardly see at all let alone stand or deliver lines or do anything except convince us that what's really in those bottles of rum is in fact rum.

Overall Ranking: 6 out of 10
I still really enjoyed it in spite of the disappointing performance

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